Last Kiss Goodbye
by GippalGurl
Summary: NEW STORY! ALL HUMAN Bella Swan, slave to her job,leads a very boring life in NYC. She meets Edward Cullen the smooth,gorgeous criminal. What has he been sent to do, and why? What will Bella do when she finds out? EDWARDxBELLA
1. Chapter 1

**Hello, and thank you for reading my fanfic: Last Kiss Goodbye. This is a first POV fanfic that is going to be switching from Bella and Edward's POV's. **

**Please read and review this story! I really appreciate it! **

**Chapter 1**

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**--Bella Swan--**

"TAXI! STOP! NOO! WAIT!"

Welcome to my life. My name is Bella Swan. 23 years old. Single, and…

"PLEASE! STOP THAT TAXI! I HAVE TO GET TO WORK!"

Ahh yes, work. Wonderful, wonderful 9 to 5…OH if only it was that simple…Mine was more like whenever my boss needed me. Be it midnight or 5 am…Constant errand running, memo taking, jetting here and there for a 'Faaaaabulous' fashion magazine editor.

I came to New York City with dreams of grandeur…Long nights partying, strolls through Central Park with a gorgeous man at my side, and a beautiful loft on the 20th floor overlooking the city…

Instead I have long nights with terrible allergies from all the pollution here, strolls through Central Park with a gorgeous Labrador Retriever named George,(who,by the way, makes a whole LOT of POOP for me to pick up), and a not so lovely one bedroom apartment on the 5th floor overlooking…the local tire recycling plant. Oh and how can I forget my constantly leaky toilet and incredibly nosy neighbor Mrs. Penderly with her 30 cats…

Speaking of work…That is where I am supposed to be oh…3 minutes ago… Here I am, stuck on 5th and Main, with a large armful of Starbucks drinks, and a taxi driver who doesn't even seem to know I exist. You see my wonderful boss decided to ring me up at 6:30 am (30 minutes before work starts mind you) to tell me that I needed to bring her some Starbucks. "OH DAAAAHLING, I have a couple more orders for you to pick up for the office while you are at it." She had said in her incredibly nasal voice.

A couple more turned into oh….15 orders…

"I NEED A TALL MOCHA LATTE NO WHIP CREAM, EASY FOAM, EXTRA DOUBLE ESPRESSO ASAP!"

UGH. Repeating that 15 times just about killed me…

Anyways, back to the present. My current taxi has now left me behind, on a busy corner in the craziest city in the world. Still, trying to balance the coffee, I begin to try and hail yet another cab driver.

Suddenly a smooth voice speaks right behind me.

"Excuse me; do you need some help with that?"

Clumsily flopping around to see who was speaking, I stared straight into a black tie, and white shirt. I looked up to see the most gorgeous man I have ever seen on the face of the planet. And trust me I have seen my fair share of gorgeous men. I DO work at a fashion magazine.

He had longish copper hair that fell down just above his shoulders and dark sunglasses on over his eyes. He smiled crookedly down at me, and I thought I would drop my Starbucks right then and there all over his shiny expensive black shoes.

"Ahh…baaa..whuh…" Was all that I could manage to get out of my mouth. Psh. Typical Bella. The epitome of smoothness. NOT.

He laughed lightly. "I'll take that as a yes." He gently took the coffee tray from my hands, and then putting his two long fingers to his very very gorgeous mouth, whistled loudly. Like magic a cab immediately appeared in front of me.

I picked up my overly full purse, and tried to compose myself as much as I possibly could. Of course standing next to this man, I pretty much looked like a homeless bum.

I smoothed out my long brown ponytail, and brushed off my blue skirt and black shirt. I of course had a lovely whip cream stain on the front of my skirt, which I am sure made me look like a million bucks. sigh

Finally getting my nerves and voice back, I thanked the polite stranger, who stood holding my coffee and the taxi door open smiling lightly.

I sat down in the stiff taxi seat, and then turned to get the coffee from him. He was already bending down, smiling his crooked smile. I could see myself reflected in his dark black sunglasses. I hate it when people wear sunglasses like that. You can never tell what they were looking at.

I assumed he was looking into my eyes, and not the rest of my disheveled appearance.

I took the coffee from him, and our hands brushed one another. His fingers were cool, yet there was an electricity about that touch that made me shiver slightly.

"Umm…thanks again…I really appreciate your…Ahh…Halp.." The last word kind of came out in a squeaky yelp…like a lonely puppy…GAH why do I have to be such an idiot!

He didn't seem to notice though. If he did, he didn't show it. He simply continued to smile, closed the door and signaled for me to roll down the window.

The cab HAD to have manual windows didn't it? Took me a couple of minutes to finally get a grip on the handle and roll the window down.

"You're welcome for the help. I hope your day goes better than it already has…" He backed a little ways off from the cab, just a couple of feet.

"Oh, and Miss Swan…You have just a little whip cream on the bottom of your skirt…might want to take care of that before you get to where you are going." He laughed and waved.

"Hey! How do you know my last name!?" The taxi driver took off before I could get my answer, but I looked back just in time to see him tapping his left breast pocket.

I looked down at my shirt on the left side, and saw my silver name tag shining in the morning sun. "Bella Swan Assistant to Editor in Chief."

Guh, kill me now.

**--Edward--**

God this car is stifling. I hate sitting here, waiting and waiting like this. I wish that Rosalie would just call Emmett and get the orders to get this all over with. I can't stand all of the bells and whistles that we have to go through in order to get a job done.

Get information on the target, take a look at piles of paperwork, follow contacts, figure out the best way to get in and get out silently…blah blah blah.

I've been doing this thing now for 5 years. I know the way it goes like the back of my hand, and I must say that I think this assignment has been a shitty one.

You must be wondering what exactly it is that I do? Well, to keep things simple and sweet, I was sent here today to kidnap someone. Someone important. Someone who will make the company I work for a lot of money. You see me and my family work for some very influential people in New York City. The Volturi's. The Volturi family had led the city's biggest underground gambling ring since before I was born.

My adopted sisters Alice and Rosalie and their boyfriends Jasper and Emmett both are all involved with me in order to pull this job off. You see, we are to kidnap the child of a very important person in this city, turn them over to the Volturi, who will in turn ransom them back to their father for a very large sum. Apparently our victim's father got in deep at one of the black jack tables in the Volturi's most prestigious underground casino, and now owes them a pretty penny.

And he's not paying…

"There she is Edward."

Rosalie sits next to me in my silver Volvo, looking out of the side window at the busy corner we have been watching for a while.

I look in the direction she is pointing and see the person we have been waiting for…

She looks like she is about to have a nervous breakdown. She is precariously balancing what looks like 30 cups of coffee in her left hand, while her right hand frantically waves down a passing taxi.

"That's her alright. Long unkempt hair. Frumpy outfit…" Rosalie observes quietly from her seat next to me. Of course anyone who isn't dressed in the latest designer clothing would be considered 'frumpy' in Rosalie's eyes. She looked like a supermodel all the time. Her golden blonde hair was neatly tied up in a flawless bun, and she wore a business suit that was a dark navy blue with a white shirt strategically unbuttoned underneath. Her black lace bra could be seen peeking out from under the shirt just slightly.

Rosalie had always relied on her looks to get her whatever she wanted from men…And it had always worked for her.

I rolled my eyes at her comment, and looked back at the struggling girl who was still trying to wave down a taxi.

"So what time does she get off of work?" I asked as I continued to observe her. She actually wasn't half bad looking…There was something about her that I couldn't quite place…She wasn't gorgeous like Rosalie of course, but she had a unique beauty about her. As for gracefulness…well…she was definitely lacking in that department.

"Well, she was supposed to be at work right now actually, so I can guarantee that her boss will make her stay late."

"Mmm." I didn't really respond to Rosalie, I had another idea in mind…

Tonight was the night that we had to carry out our plan. And in order to do this, Bella Swan had to be at her apartment by a certain time…

I stepped out of the car, and put my sunglasses on. I think I will help out just a little bit.

"What the hell are you doing! Edward!"

I could hear Rosalie hiss behind me as I walked toward the struggling girl. A taxicab had just pulled off leaving her stranded on the corner, and she really looked like she was about to cry.

I walked up behind her. "Excuse me do you need some help with that."

Bella stiffened up and turned around slowly. I noticed that she wore little makeup on her face, and her eyes were very brown and large. She stared at my chest and then up at my face.

Hmm…do I…have something stuck in my teeth? She was staring at me as if she had never seen another human being before. She managed to squeak out something I didn't understand, so I decided to take matters into my own hands.

"I'll take that as a yes." I took the coffee from her hands, and whistled for a taxi that was passing by.

The cabbie stopped suddenly and backed up to the curb. It definitely pays to have a strong New York whistle out here.

I opened up the taxi door for her, and watched as she gathered her things and slipped into the taxi.

When she got in, I leaned down to hand her the coffee. She really looked like a deer caught in headlights.

I think she managed to squeak out a thank you. It was hard to hear her voice; it was very soft and quiet.

I smiled and handed her the Starbucks that she was trying so hard to hold onto before. And shut the door to the taxi. Since the window was rolled up I signaled for her to roll her window down.

It took her a few moments to get the thing rolled down, but when she finally did, I said, "You're welcome for the help. I hope your day goes better than it already has…"

I backed away from the curb so that the driver could get on his way, and get our little Miss Swan to her job semi-on time. Got to keep things moving along.

I had noticed a little bit of whipped cream that she had dropped on her lap while she was waiting for the taxi. I decided she didn't need to get into trouble at work for her appearance on top of being late.

"Oh, and Miss Swan…You have just a little whip cream on the bottom of your skirt…might want to take care of that before you get to where you are going."

As the taxi was driving off, I heard her exclaim "Hey! How do you know my last name?!"

Thank god she had a name tag on. That little slip up could have cost me…I laughed and pointed to my left breast pocket indicating that I saw her nametag. Hopefully she gets the clue…

I walked slowly back to Rosalie, who sat upright in my car, her arms crossed. I knew that she hated it when I did things like that. What can I say? I like to take little risks here and there…

"You are such an ass." Rosalie says as I laugh and shift the car into gear.

Told you she hates it when I do that kind of stuff…

**Chapter 1 End**

_Well, what did you think of my first chapter? Do you think the alternate POV's are confusing? Please let me know, as this is how I want to do my whole story! Of course later down the line I will switch back and forth between Edward and Bella multiple times during the story…._

_Please review, and let me know if you find any errors or if you think there is something that I need to change! All constructive criticism will be considered!_

_Thanks! Chapter 2 will be up soon! _


	2. Chapter 2

_I just wanted to say THANKS A MILLION for the reviews that everyone gave! Also the writing tips helped me out so so so much, and I definitely implemented them into my next chapter! I hope that you guys like this one! PLEASE review and let me know what you think! Thanks so much!_

**--Bella--**

_Later that Evening:_

"Come on Georgie…Hurry up…It's getting cold.."

I watched as my yellow lab George circled a large grassy area searching for a place to use the bathroom. I was in the middle of Central Park, just a few blocks from my apartment, shivering, and hungry. I pulled my sweater closer together to try and hold in some body heat. Only 5pm and it was already getting chilly.

I sighed…It had been one of those days.

When I had arrived at work, 15 minutes late, my boss had of course chewed me a new one.

"Do you want to work here Isabella? Because right now it certainly seems like you don't. I have at least 10 girls that would kill to be in your position right now!"

I felt like yelling right then and there "THEN LET THEM HAVE IT! I QUIT!" But I knew that I couldn't do that. I couldn't let my dad have the satisfaction of knowing that I could not make it on my own.

You see, my dad Charlie lived in New Jersey, about a 40 minute drive away from me. I rarely, if ever visited him anymore. Why? Well, the night that I had found out that I had gotten my job here in the city, we had gotten into a pretty bad argument, and I had stormed out and stayed with a friend until I moved out here completely. I still remember his angry reaction when I told him about my move.

"Bella! What is wrong with you? Moving to New York? On your own? To pursue some stupid idea that you might make it with some fancy schmancy fashion magazine? You're crazy! I thought we had everything planned out. You were going to continue in college and get a real education. Not follow some pipe dream that will cause you nothing but regret."

"Dad that is what YOU wanted. I have a great opportunity to get my foot in the door at an amazing company. I think I am old enough to make my own decisions now…I wish you would stop trying to run my life!"

After that we pretty much both yelled back and forth and he said some pretty hurtful things about my moving out, and I said some pretty hurtful things about the way he had been acting. Then I left the house. I think I was just angry about what he said, and stubborn. He just didn't believe in me, and I was going to show him I could do what he thought was impossible.

Of course now that I have been living here for a year, I have to say that he was sort of right. It is hard living in this big city, with no friends, and hardly anyone to talk to. I call my mom every once in a while, but its hard to get a hold of her, since she remarried and lives in Arizona…

And as you know my job isn't going too well, since I was "promoted" (if you can call it that) to being an assistant. (Or should I say SLAVE.)

FINALLY Georgie finishes doing what he has to do. I tugged on his leash to get him going home, and after that he needed no more convincing. In fact HE pulled me the rest of the way to my little apartment.

**--Edward--**

"Is everything ok with you guys?" I spoke quietly into my cell phone, as I sat behind the wheel of my car. Emmett was on the other line talking quietly. Or at least trying to. His deep voice was pretty hard to keep down.

"Yeah, everything is ok over here. Rosalie and I are waiting at the drop off point."

"Ok, just stay put. Once I get the girl, I will drive over to where you guys are at and we can take things from there. This would have been so much easier with Alice and Jasper here."

Alice and Jasper were supposed to be in on this whole thing too, but they both got called away by the Volturi's for another little job they needed done. And when the Volturi's beckoned you ran.

I sighed deeply. Sometimes I wish I would have chosen a less complicated path in life. Oh well, too late to regret now.

I observed Bella Swan walking...Well, ok not walking…Being dragged by a gigantic yellow dog back to her apartment. She had just spent some time walking through Central Park with the dog, like she did every night.

I pretty much knew her routine by heart now. Even though I had only been watching her for a week, she was definitely a creature of habit.

Get home around 5pm, take the dog outside, go back home, come out around 7pm to get her mail, return inside, then around 8pm every Tuesday and Thursday, she would walk down the block to a little coffee shop and read or go over paperwork and drink some sort of frilly coffee drink.

I was actually surprised that she took the chance of walking to the shop after sunset by herself.

I mean even if it was just right around the corner, it WAS New York City…

Then around 9pm she would walk back home, and then it was off to bed. Most likely around 9:30…

Not a very exciting life from what I had seen. She never had anyone come over to her place, and she never really went out and did anything…

I yawned widely. Speaking of sleep, I was in desperate need of some. I had been awake now for almost 24 hours trying to get things in order for what we were planning on doing.

The kidnapping part wasn't going to be too complicated. I was going to simply follow her out of her apartment when she left to go to the coffee shop, since it was Thursday, grab her from behind and be off quietly. As small as she was, I didn't think that she could put up much of a fight. At least I hoped not…I would really hate to have to knock her out if I didn't have to. The complicated part came later...

Hmm…

**--Bella--**

"Umm…Lets see…What will I be having for dinner tonight? Leftover chicken casserole? Or…a frozen dinner…" I spoke aloud to myself, trying to figure out what boring dish I was going to nuke in the microwave.

Oh decisions decisions….

I finally just pulled out the chicken casserole, since I did not feel like heating up another frozen slab of meat with some fake potatoes…

I really need to go to the grocery store…

While my food was heating up, my mind drifted back to the handsome stranger that had helped me out earlier today…I wonder what he was doing right now…

Hmph probably at some swanky party on the 30th floor of the Ritz…Or shacking up with some blonde haired fake boob bimbo…A guy like that would never go for a girl like me.

I glanced into a little mirror that hung on the fridge. A small, heart shaped face with big brown eyes stared back. My hair hung down my shoulders limply. I attempted to push it upward in what could be called a ponytail…It looked crappy. I let it fall back down. There were dark circles under my eyes most likely from my lack of sleep recently…

Ugh, I was a mess…

George started barking at the sound of the microwave beeping. He always got excited because I never finished all my food and he always got some of the leftovers.

Pulling it out, I took it to my couch and sat down in front of the television.

"Georgie, get down, you spaz."

I hefted George's gigantic butt off of the couch and began to eat. I decided to flip on the TV to see what was going on in the news.

The news anchor (who had definitely overdone it with the hairspray) was talking.

"And now for some local news. NYPD has discovered yet another underground gambling casino last night that led to the arrest of 10 employees and 30 customers that had been participating in illegal gambling. The ring was being held under the Chin Po Chinese restaurant in China Town. Sergeant Christopher Lee believes that this gambling ring along with two others that were closed down within the last three months is the work of the Italian family the Volturi's. Little is known about this family, and there have been no confirmed leads according to the Sergeant."

A tall man who looked to be in his 40's with sandy blonde hair appeared on the screen.

"All I can say is that we have definite leads that the Volturi's are involved in these rings. I cannot give any more information about this situation at this time. I can only say that the arrests tonight occurred with no injuries to either my department or any others."

I flipped the TV off. I had been hearing about these gambling busts over the past few months, and frankly I was getting tired of it being the center of attention.

Besides it was late, time to jump in the shower and then go down to my favorite little spot to read for a while…

**--Edward--**

I checked my watch. 7:40pm…Just a few more minutes now and little Bella will be leaving her apartment. I had parked my Volvo down the street a little ways, in a nice dark lot so that no one could see what I was doing. But not so far that I would have any problems getting here back to the car.

I slipped on my black coat and walked past the apartments where Bella would be emerging from and walked around the corner into a little alleyway. Perfect. It was nice and dark, and there was a large stack of boxes that I could hide behind, if the need arose. Now time to wait…

--Bella--

Oh I feel so much better after that shower…I love hot showers…They always seem to renew your spirit, no matter how down you are feeling. I threw on my favorite blue sweater and a comfy pair of jeans. George of course thought that he was going to go with me, but unfortunately they didn't allow dogs in the coffee shop. He started jumping up and down and scratching at the front door to go out.

"NO Georgie. NO. Stay." URG had to go through this with him every time I went anywhere. I finally ended up shoving him back. Outside I checked my watch. Ooh 7:45…I'm a few minutes early getting out…

Crap forgot my book…

**--Edward--**

Damn, it's really cold tonight. Come on Miss Swan…Hurry it up…my arms are growing numb standing out here…

Suddenly I heard a noise behind me. I turned around to see what it was, but could not see anything past the cardboard boxes in the alley…Hmm..there was no moon tonight either to offer any kind of extra assistance with seeing anything…

Must have been some sort of animal…Didn't want to know what kind out here…Rats…Cats...Dogs…Alligators...who knew in New York.

I looked at my watch again. Alright 7:50. Not too much longer…I hope that Rosalie and Emmett are ready to go. I now I-

Suddenly my thoughts were interrupted by a sharp blow to the back of my head. My vision became blurry from the hit, and I turned to find out who was responsible for this.

Demetri, one of the Volturi's hired thugs stood behind me, with a grin on his face. He held a small club in his right hand.

"Edvard, how iz ze whezzer tonight?" He spoke in a thick accent. "Haveeng a good time?"

He raised the club again, but this time I was ready for him. I grabbed his hand and held it fast against the wall of the alley. He was slightly taller and larger than me, but I was quicker.

"Demetri! What the hell are you doing here! You are going to ruin everything! The girl is coming out of her apartment any minute. And why the hell are you hitting me over the head. When Aro Volturi finds out…"

"Aro vas ze one who sent me here Edvard!" Demetri hissed in my face. His breath stank of garlic. "He knows about you and your family! He knows ze truth!"

Shit. This didn't look good. You definitely, DEFINITELY, did not want to get on the bad side of Aro Volturi…

Before I could speak to Demetri, he wrenched his wrist from my grasp and brought it up and across my face. The sting of the club on my cheek made my toes curl…I reached up to my lip and felt warm blood coming from a wound…

There was nothing I could do then, I had to protect myself, and then get the hell out of there…

I reached around with my left fist and it connected with Demetri's nose. Blood started pouring from his face and down his white tshirt he had on. It didn't seem to faze him one bit. He swung wildly with rage, yet I managed to block most of his punches. One caught me in the ribs and it almost knocked me to the floor.

"I am going to make zees hurt very very much Edvard! No one double crossed Arvo Volturi and leeves to see their next day!"

He brought the club up high in the air to strike. Just as he brought it down, I twisted out of the way, grabbed his arm, and twisted it, instantly breaking his wrist. He howled in pain, and backed away into the cardboard boxes.

"Demetri, you tell your boss…" Just then a loud noise sounded from the place where Demetri fell, and I felt a searing pain shoot through my shoulder. I had been shot. Blood gushed from the wound and onto the sidewalk.

Demetri got up holding a small gun he had concealed in his pocket, and pointed it at my chest. This was it…I was going to die…

**--Bella--**

Ok, finally…Got everything I need…After going back into the apartment I had to hunt down my keys, get my book, and of course wrestle with Georgie to get back out of the place…

Whew…

I stepped outside…Ooh it was pretty chilly out here tonight…

Suddenly the silence was broken by a loud pop…

I looked down the sidewalk about 40 feet away and saw a young man emerge from the alley, and fall to the ground. He was clutching his chest.

Oh my god…He must have gotten robbed…or worse…

All of my instincts told me to run upstairs, and lock myself into my apartment and call 911. I had never been in a situation like this before, but I knew that it was not safe…

Yet again, I couldn't just leave this stranger out on the sidewalk bleeding…Crap! Why hadn't I brought my cell phone with me?

I cautiously approached the young man who lay face down on the sidewalk…Was he dead…Oh please don't let him be dead. I couldn't handle something like that.

As I walked up, I saw longish copper hair shining under the dim streetlight. He had emerged from a dark alleyway, and from the looks of it, there had been a pretty good struggle between him and whoever had shot him.

Crouching down beside him, I turned him over slightly to see his face, and to check if he was still breathing. I gasped at what I saw…

The young man from earlier this morning!

_Chapter 2 end._

_So what did you guys think!? Please please review if you enjoyed it! I really appreciate the feedback; it really does help so much!_

Chapter 3 will be up soon enough! Thanks so so so much to all of the people who reviewed my first chapter and who favorited this story! You guys are so so so awesome!


	3. Chapter 3

_**Hello everyone! Thanks so much for all your kind reviews! I appreciate you reading this story! I apologize for not updating this story in such a long while…I have had many personal things happen in my life in the past few months that has kept me away from the computer….Hasn't stopped my imagination from running a mile a minute though! xD I have plenty of ideas on how this story is going to go, and I am ready to put it all down on paper…err virtal paper…**_

_**So with that I give you the next chapter in my story "Last Kiss Goodbye."**_

_Chapter 3_

Aro Volturi sat in his large leather chair, long legs leaning casually on his desk, his pricey shoes shining in the dim light of his very large office.

A beautiful woman stood in front of him, her arms crossed over her very expensive suit, her eyes flashing unhappily at her husband. She finally spoke, her heavy italian accent breaking the silence between herself and Aro.

"I know zat you veel take care of ze Cullens Aro, I have never doubted you when eet came to that. I am concerned about ze girl, and whezzer or not you should even bother vit her. She eez weak, not vorth our time…"

Aro sat forward quickly and slammed his large hand down on his desk. A large ring he wore on his right pinky finger made a loud clanging noise as it hit the fine oak. He stared at his wife, eyes blazing. Sometimes she could be so stubborn. When he finally spoke his voice was quiet, yet very intense. His accent was not as heavy as his wife's as he had spent much more time in America than she had, and had picked up much more of and american twang to his language.

"Sulpicia, you know zat I cannot STAND eet when you question vat I do. I vish you would stay out of these matters . Have I ever done anything to make you doubt my judgement. Look around you. You are surrounded by the finest things, not a single problem in ze world. Let's keep it like that shall we darling?"

Sulphicia's dark eyes flashed at him, wanting to respond to him…Yet she wasn't a stupid woman. She was comfortable indeed. Rich? Very. And well protected. She just did not want this Bella girl ruining everything that they had worked so hard to accomplish.

"Fine my love, I shall let ze matter go, you always know best."

Aro smiled, his white teeth gleaming almost glowing.

"Of course I do, darling, of course."

**_---Bella---_**

OH CRAP! What do I do with this guy!? I can't just leave him here on the sidewalk…Is he even alive?

I glanced down at his smooth face, his eyes were closed, blood was trickling slowly from a wound somewhere on his head…

Please don't let me see this guy's brain all over the place…

I gently turned him over, and to my relief there were no zombie movie-ish blood and guts all over the place. Just a small bit of blood from his head.

I looked down at his shirt, there was a small hole right under his left breast pocket. No blood though, just a hole. Oh jeez, he's been shot…I really need to get this guy some help.

Doing the only thing I could think of at the time, I put my hands under his armpits, and dragged him slowly to the front of my apartment building. He moaned slightly, but did not stir.

"God you're kind of heavy…" I spoke out loud. Suddenly his eyes fluttered open. His dark amber eyes met mine for a minute and then closed, but I could tell he was conscious.

I spoke quietly. "Umm…you umm..Sir I think you were shot, you are hurt, can you wait here while I run upstairs and call 911?"

His eyes opened quickly and he spoke in a hoarse voice.

"No police…please…"

"No police!?" I said quickly…Oh man, is this guy some kind of criminal or something?

He seemed to read my mind. "I'm not going to hurt you and I'm not some kind of murderer or anything…I just need to rest a little…I was just attacked…robbed…Don't feel like putting up with police questions and paperwork and whatnot."

Something in his eyes made me almost melt…He was literally the most gorgeous man I have ever laid eyes on, even if he was half dead being dragged across a sidewalk.

He stood up slowly and I grabbed his arm to help him to his feet. He then put one arm around my shoulder, and I felt a warmth go through my body. That feeling quickly disappeared when he almost collapsed…He really was heavier than he looked.

He and I somehow managed to make it up my stairs in one piece…Me huffing and puffing and he doing the best he could without dropping in a heap at my feet.

Once inside my apartment, I laid him on the couch, and put a towel under his head, and a blanket over him. He was no longer bleeding like I thought so the wound on his head must not be all that bad.

Georgie of course began sniffing curiously at the new stranger while wagging his tail and whining.

Hmph some guard dog…

I dragged him by his collar and locked him in my bedroom and then got a small baggie of ice and laid it carefully on the man's forehead. He seemed to be sleeping peacefully now. I gently took down the blanket, and looked at the small hole that was ripped in his shirt. Something dark blue shown underneath the gape in his clothing. Curious, I carefully unbuttoned the bottom four buttons of his shirt, and opened it.

Sitting over his very toned stomach covering his ribcage and breastbone was a bullet proof vest. No wonder he wasn't bleeding from the wound…He didn't have one because the vest had stopped it. There was a small indentation where a bullet had hit him still on the vest, but no bullet to be seen…

"Odd.." I quietly spoke as I laid his shirt back down and covered him again. What was this guy? Some sort of cop? Criminal? Basketcase?

Hmm..he certainly didn't looklike a criminal. I brushed the long reddish brown hair from the impossibly smooth, white forehead, and stared at his face for a moment.

Besides, he was pretty polite to me this morning when he helped me out…

Way way too good looking to be a criminal…Maybe a mobster or something…sexy yet slightly dangerous.

He stirred slightly and the ice pack slipped onto the floor. I picked it up and lied it gently back on his head. Everything inside me screamed to call an ambulance,the police…someone… yet something else told me that he was harmless, and I should just let the poor guy sleep and then he could leave in the morning.

He didn't seem to have any weapons on him and I pretty much thought that if he was planning on doing something to me he would have already had it done and over with…

I slowly got up and left him sleeping on my couch. Entering my bedroom, I found Georgie laying on my bed wagging his tail and panting heavily.

"Great job Georgie, I have some strange guy laying on my couch, and you want to be best friends with him…Can't you at least pretend to be a little scary every once in a while?"

George simply barked one time and proceeded to try and tear up a sock of mine that he had gotten from under my covers.

I looked at my alarm clock. 10pm. Geez, I had to be up by 5am tomorrow, had some stupid meeting I had to be at around 6am otherwise my boss would kill me.

Wait, wait…what was I thinking!? I couldn't go to work tomorrow! Not with some strange guy in my apartment… What if he robbed me blind while I was away!? Or worse…what if he murdered me in my sleep, and THEN robbed me blind? Of course there wasn't much that he would be able to get away with…A 20 inch television, DVD player, and some doggie toys… Oh and some frozen dinners…He could have those if he wanted.

My fear getting the best of me, I quickly ran to my door and opened it a peek. He still lay there on the sofa, his skin illuminated softly in the kitchen light that I had left on. His breathing was steady and quiet. He was definitely asleep.

I shut the door back quietly and turned the small lock on the doorknob. Then, just to be safe, I pushed my heavy dresser in front of the door and made sure it was right up against it.

"There…" I said as I wiped the sweat from my forehead and jumped into my bed…"Try to get through that Mr. Mobster…"

I changed out of my clothes very quickly and into some comfortable pajamas. After shoving Georgie out of the way, I jumped into bed and under my heavy down comforter. The heater in apartment sucked, so of course it was freezing in my room. At least that's what I told myself as I shivered under the blankets. Deep down I knew why I was really shivering…and he was lying on my couch in the living room.

**_---Edward---_**

I am walking between two large buildings….Looking up I see that the roofs seem to disappear into the clouds of the light blue sky...Strange…these buildings do not seem to have any windows…

I speak out loud…

"Where am I? Is anyone there?"

My voice echoes off the walls…the sound reverberates in my ears and then vanishes suddenly…I need to find a way out of this place…The red brick walls of the windowless buildings seem to close in on me, causing claustrophobia to set in. I start to run….

The buildings seem to stretch on forever…redness closes around me on both sides….Gasping for air, I finally come to the end of the buildings, and realize that I am standing on a cliff, overlooking a large crystal blue lake.

"What the? Where do I go now?"

Frustrated, I shout at the top of my lungs. Suddenly there is a noise behind me. I turn to see a tall man, looking at me, a wicked smile on his face. His beady eyes looking me square in the face.

Fear grips me for some reason…It is not a feeling I am used to…I take a step forward.

"Who are you? What do you want?"

The man simply continues to smile, his very white teeth gleaming in the sunlight. His skin seems to glow slightly red, probably from the red of the buildings…It gives him a devilish look.

"Look buddy, I don't know who you are or what you are doing here....but…"

Suddenly the man stops grinning and his features contort into a terrible grimace.

"I veel find you Edward. I promise this. You will die." His voice sends chills down my spine.

"Why do you want to kill me? What have I done to you?" I ask, my voice quavering slightly.

The strange man starts to laugh..quietly at first, and then more loudly, almost violently. I cannot stand the sound of this man's laughter, it is evil, I have to get away from it.

Turning I run toward the edge of the cliff, the man's laughter still echoing off the walls. Desperate, I look down at the long drop to the blue lake below. I only have one choice if I want to escape from the maddening laughter.

Taking a deep breath, I jump….Halfway down I start to scream as the water rushes up toward me at a deafening speed…

"Raaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaggghh!!!!"

I sat up suddenly, the horrible dream I had just experienced waking me violently…

I felt a sharp jolt of pain in my head,and my hand shot up to my forehead and felt a bandage tightly wrapped around it. Oh god I felt like my head was about to explode…

I looked around the dim room, the sunlight just starting to pour into a large window in front of me. I was lying on a small blue couch…I felt a tightness over my chest. I slowly lifted my arm and felt across it, wondering what was causing the strange feeling. It was a vest...Why did I have this on? Somehow I knew to reach around behind me and undo the Velcro that held the vest on. It slipped off my chest and I felt a rush of blood to the area as the tight grip was released.

My memory was completely fogged over as to how I ended up in this small apartment living room with this bandage on my head, and this vest on my torso. I felt a small twinge of pain on the left side of my chest. I unbuttoned my shirt and felt a small nickel size lump. Looking down I noticed a small welt in the area. Putting two and two together as much as I could, I figured I must have gotten shot somehow, and this vest was a bullet-proof vest. It had obviously saved my life as the welt was exactly where I felt my heart pounding in my chest.

My confusion at my situation was suddenly heightened. I heard an alarm sound behind a closed door to the left of me, and then heard a loud barking and scrambling before a girl's voice sounded loudly in the closed off room.

"OH CRAP!"

My eyebrow shot up suddenly as I heard a loud thud, and then scraping on the floor directly behind the door. After a few moments silence the door burst open and out came, what appeared to be a crazy banshee. Her brown hair was flying everywhere, she was frantically calling on a cell phone, while trying to slip one high heeled shoe onto her foot…the other shoe must still be in her banshee cave behind her.

She didn't seem to notice that I was sitting on her couch, staring at her with my mouth hanging open. I heard a loud barking from behind her and then a huge yellow cannonball zoomed from between her legs, knocking her to the floor. The cell phone slid across the wood flooring of her living room and landed right in front of me.

"GAH GEORGIE!" She yelled as she got up. I picked up the phone and held it up to the wild girl who was getting up off the floor. This Georgie creature had jumped up on the foot of the couch and sat on my legs panting heavily.

She looked up suddenly as if just noticing I had been sitting here the whole time....Surely this girl knew that for some reason I was sleeping in her living room.

"Oh jeez, I completely forgot...." Suddenly a very loud and very unhappy voice sounded through the phone, yelling inaudible words.

The girl brushed her dark hair out of her face, and grabbed the phone from my hand.

"I am so sorry I am late , I am getting ready as we speak, please don't..." She stopped speaking and the loud voice sounded over the phone again. Apparently the girl's pleading did not have any effect on the boisterous voice.

"I understand, I know there was an important meeting today, I just sort of...slept in..."

Even louder yelling on the phone. The girl had to practically hold it at arms length so she didn't blow her ear drums out. Then, as quickly as the screaming started, it ended with two very distinctive words.

"YOU'RE FIRED!"

The girl's brown eyes grew very large, and she put the phone back up to her ear. "Are you there? OH no..." The girl tried to call back two more times, but got no answer. Finally she put the phone down, and with a look of complete sadness, she sat in the chair across from me.

The entire time this was going on I did not quite know what to do, or how exactly I found myself in this situation. I had no memory of what happened to me yesterday, or the day before yesterday...or the past few years even...everything was a huge blur.

Finally after a few minutes the girl looked up at me and spoke. "Umm...How are you feeling? I'm really sorry you had to hear all that...My boss...she's uhh..a little highstrung."

"I can see that...umm...Miss...I am sorry, it sounds like you lost your job? I certainly hope that it was not because of me..."

She sat up straight in the chair she was slouched in, and smiled slightly. "No it wasn't your fault, it was completely mine...my alarm did not go off, stupid me forgot to set it last night...Speaking of last night, are you feeling ok? You had a pretty bad bump on your head, and I pretty much thought you were dead when I found you..."

I looked at her, puzzled as to what she was talking about. Found me? Dead? Well, this situation was more serious that I first thought.

"This may sound a little odd to you...Umm..May I ask what your name is?"

"It's Isabella, but everyone calls me Bella."

When she said her name it rang a small bell...it sounded so familiar...I just could not put my finger on it...  
"Bella, ok...Well Bella I think that I may have completely lost my memory...I honestly have no idea what I am doing here, or what happened to me last night. And I certainly do not recall being almost dead, as you put it...Would it be possible for you to refresh me?"

Bella stood up and stared at me, her dark eyes flashing in the morning light of the sun...I had to say that once she calmed down and straightened herself out, she was an attractive girl.

"Wait, wait..Are you serious? You don't remember ANYTHING?"

"I wish I wasn't serious...I honestly have no idea how I ended up here...For all I know you could be my girlfriend and we had a little spat and I ended up on the couch for the night..."

She blushed slightly and took a seat in her chair again.

"We are definitely not dating, in fact before yesterday I had only met you one other time."

She then proceeded to tell me her whole story about how she and I met each other, how I helped her into her taxi, and how she finally found me on the sidewalk, apparently shot and unconscious. She finished her story by telling me that she got me into her apartment, on her couch. And of course the story ended with her getting fired this morning...

After she had finished, she looked at me curiously and said, "Well, if you don't have any memory of who you are...how am I supposed to find out your name? You didn't tell me who you were when you helped me out the first time we met..."

I stood up slowly, I still felt dizzy...I thought that maybe I had a wallet on me that held a driver's license, or business card....something to identify me. It is certainly a strange feeling to not even know your name...

She watched me as I felt the pockets of my jeans, and the front pocket of my shirt. Nothing....I sat down, frustrated that I did not have some sort of identifying item on my person. I glanced down at the bulletproof vest that I had taken off, and noticed something shining underneath it. A watch. I picked it up and turned it over. The girl spoke up.

"That must have fallen off your wrist when I laid you on the couch last night...It's definitely not mine, I haven't had a guy in here in....err...a while..." She looked down again as I turned the expensive looking watch over in my hands. The face of it was cracked, and it was definitely not working. But the back was even more interesting than the front. It was inscribed in elegant writing, very small, but readable when you looked closely.

"Dearest Edward, look at this and think of me."

"Edward...my name is Edward..." I spoke quietly as I looked at the once beautiful trinket. The rest of the message puzzled me even further....Look at this and think of me. Was it a lover? Sister? Friend?

Frustrated I dropped the watch on the floor again and looked at Bella who was very quiet watching me ponder...

She spoke up when she noticed me looking at her. "Well, at least now I know your name...Edward...its umm nice. Nice name..." She stood up slowly and walked to her kitchen and looked at me again.

"Well, err... would you like a drink of something? You must be really thirsty after last night...I have water, grape juice, some soda..."

Just then I did notice that my throat felt parched. "I will take some water please."

She pulled a bottle of water out of her refrigerator and brought it over to me. I opened the cold bottle and let the icy liquid pour down my throat....It made my body feel a little better. My mind, on the other hand, was still in complete turmoil.

I knew my first name...but that was it....

What brought me to this girl's apartment? Why was I wearing a bullet proof vest? And most importantly who was this mystery person who had given me that watch, and wanted me to think about them?

What a day...

And it had just begun...

_---End Chapter 3---_

**Well there it is folks...Please tell me what you thought about it...**

**Just a note...**

**I have gotten feedback that Edward and Bella are very OOC in this story...Well, I intentionally wanted it this way. I think that having these two complex characters thrown into a situation that you would not normally picture them in would be something new and different for everyone to read...So I hope that you can look over the fact that Edward may not be that vampirish, smooth, cool character you see in the Twilight series, and Bella isn't the bookish klutz....Hopefully I can still keep most of their characteristics and maybe add some new ones to these amazing characters...**

**Thanks.**


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